Canadian Citizen Claims Abuse in Camp Bucca

A U.S. resident who was held prisoner in another detention center in Iraq last year said prisoners there were also beaten and sexually humiliated.

Hossam Shaltout said widespread mistreatment by soldiers in Camp Bucca detention center in southern Iraq was as inhumane as that depicted in recent photos from Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq.

He described Camp Bucca as a "torture camp," where soldiers beat and humiliated prisoners - including having them lie naked atop each other or pose in sexual positions.

Shaltout said he saw soldiers tie groups of naked prisoners together. He said they hogtied his hands and legs and placed scorpions on his body.

"American soldiers love scorpions," Shaltout said in a telephone interview from Saudi Arabia that was arranged by his American lawyer.

Shaltout, a native Egyptian, said he’s a Canadian citizen and permanent U.S. resident but hasn’t been allowed to return to the United States. He’s now living in Saudi Arabia and is seeking $350,000 from the government through the U.S. Army Claims Service for "torture and other personal injuries" while at Camp Bucca.